Will Other States Follow New Jersey’s Lead With The Sporsbetting Law?

West Virginia was the first state to pass a sports betting law in 2018, and lawmakers and regulators in other states took notice when it did.

But now we have a second state to enact a sports betting law in 2018, as New Jersey joined WV with its new law this week.
And that means will be more fodder for other states looking at legalizing sports betting and possible new precedent.

There is a lot to unpack from the law, but here’s a look at three key provisions that other states may choose to follow or discard when working on their own sports betting laws.

The NJ sports betting tax rate
New Jersey set the tax rate at:

8.5 percent for land-based sports betting revenue
13 percent for online wagering run by casinos
14.25 percent for online wagering run by racetracks.
These are reasonable rates that should allow both the state to make money and operators to run sports betting at a profit.
It falls in line with the 10 percent rate in WV sports betting and well short of the 34 percent effective tax rate that Pennsylvania enacted (along with a $10 million licensing fee.)

States have been all over the map on the tax rates, some considering rates as high as the one for PA sports betting.
Few (or none) have considered going as low as the 6.75 percent rate in Nevada.

But with another well-known gaming state setting a reasonable rate in the mid-range, will other states follow suit?

No betting on certain types of games
The NJ sports betting law puts in place a lot of limits on what types of wagers can be booked in the state.
It limits or bans wagering on:

High school games
Collegiate games involving New Jersey-based teams or college games played at venues in the state.
Esports
The first point is going to be repeated everywhere, but the others may not be.